Bashley 3rds v Mudeford 1sts – match report

Bashley 3rd team lost the toss and were asked to bat first by the top of the table Mudeford 1st team. Openers Paul Kemp and Graham Pardey started cautiously against an accurate Mudeford bowling attack. They gradually started to increase the tempo and had taken the score to 80 in the 27th over when Pardey was LBW for 31.Kemp was hampered with a hamstring injury and required the assistance of a runner but he continued to bat very well until he was caught for an excellent 62.This started a Bashley collapse as the next ball Harry Walton was caught for 12. Wickets continued to fall regularly with only Sam Laurent 21 managing double figures as Bashley finished on a disappointing 162 for 8 after their 45 overs. Gardiner (6 for 31) excelled in an accurate all round Mudeford bowling performance.

After tea, Jason Eede and Sam Laurent produced an excellent opening spell of bowling. They both beat the bat on numerous occasions without any reward until Eede struck twice in the 9th over to reduce Mudeford to 19 for 2.Patel and James then steadied the ship and they were scoring freely when Toby Mills (1 for 23) had James caught behind for 34. Michael O’Sullivan (1 for10) and Tom Saunders (1 for 14) made further inroads but Patel was now batting well and looking increasingly dangerous. Eede (4 for 26) and Laurent (1 for 33) returned and continued to pick up wickets to leave Mudeford at a precarious 159 for 8. Patel (79 not out), with an edge over the slips for four, eventually won the match for Mudeford to maintain their unbeaten record in the 40th over of a well contested match .